All eight were in stable condition and none had life-threatening injuries, Cmdr. Mike Kafka of Naval Air Force Atlantic said in a news release.

Six were taken by helicopter to hospitals in Norfolk and Portsmouth, Kafka said. Two were treated on board the Eisenhower.

The sailors were working on the flight deck at the time of the accident. Kafka said they were injured when an arresting gear parted during a routine landing by an E-2C Hawkeye aircraft.

The arresting gear consists of cables at the stern of the carrier that engage a hook on an aircraft and brings it to a stop when it lands on a carrier, spokesman Mike Maus explained.

The E-2C is a twin-engine turboprop aircraft with a 24-foot diameter radar dome attached to the upper fuselage, according to the Naval Air Systems Command.

Kafka said the aircraft resumed flight and returned safely to its base at Norfolk Naval Station Chambers Field. He said initial reports are that the aircraft was not damaged and its crew members were not injured.

The carrier is off the Virginia coast conducting training for an upcoming deployment.